Winter Classic Takes Another Step Forward In Fourth Iteration

Next Year's Winter Classic Could Remain In
Primetime Or Move To Jan. 2

While rain "made a mess of the temporary ice surface" at Heinz Field
for Saturday's Capitals-Penguins Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic, the
event "took another big step forward in its fourth year of existence,"
according to Chris Johnston of the CP. The experience was "unanimously
praised by players, coaches and team personnel, and the league may have
lucked into a ratings bonanza after weather forced the game to be moved
to prime time," as "early numbers from the U.S. were very strong." NHL
COO John Collins indicated that the league "overcame a couple major
hurdles during the past month." Not only did the NHL "prove teams could
open their doors and allow fans more access to the sport" with HBO's
"24/7 Penguins/Capitals: Road to the Winter Classic," the league also
"showed that it could handle an outdoor game in less-than-ideal
conditions." When asked prior to the game "about the possibility of
good TV ratings in prime time," Collins said, "That would be the cherry
on top of everything." Johnston wrote a "big challenge facing the NHL
is finding ways to continue creating compelling storylines and
situations for the Winter Classic." There is "no guarantee the game
will be held on New Year's Day again next year because the league still
has to negotiate new American TV contracts." In addition, Jan. 1 "falls
on a Sunday in 2012 and the NHL might be reluctant to put the event
against a full schedule of NFL games" (CP, 1/2).

PLAYING WITH THE CALENDAR: ESPN.com's Scott
Burnside cited sources as saying that there is "already preliminary
discussion about moving the game to a New Year's Eve time slot or
pushing it to Jan. 2" next year. A Saturday slot, "perhaps early to
midafternoon, might work, as it shouldn't push into NBC's New Year's
Eve programming." But Burnside added, "Regardless of whether it's being
played on Jan. 1, why clutter the schedule with other NHL games,
especially those involving American teams? If the theory is to open as
many U.S. eyes as possible to the spectacle, don't have eight other
American-based teams in action, as was the case on Saturday. ... If
they want to make this a special day for hockey, make it special" (ESPN.com, 1/3).

NIGHT TIME IS THE RIGHT TIME? The topic of whether
the Winter Classic should be permanently moved to primetime was
discussed yesterday on ESPN's "PTI," and Tony Kornheiser said, "I think
night made it great." Kornheiser: "The camera angles under the lights
were great. The only thing that was missing was snow, which by the way,
can fall at night as well as in the afternoon. I think it was
fortuitous that they postponed (it) because of the threat of rain and
went to the night game. I say every game ought to be at night." But
Michael Wilbon said, "Let's not go overboard. One of the reasons this
game was so attractive is because it was Ovechkin and Crosby. It was
the Capitals and Penguins. They've been the stars of the HBO thing --
which is fabulous -- and people had come to know them. They're rivals
in the true sense of the word. Not every matchup is going to get that
kind of following" ("PTI," ESPN, 1/3). Comcast SportsNet's Ivan Carter said, "I liked it under the lights more than the daytime" ("Washington Post Live," Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, 1/3).

OVERSTAYING ITS WELCOME? SI.com's Dan Shaughnessy
wrote it is "time to retire the outdoor hockey game." Capitals-Penguins
drew a crowd of 68,111 at Heinz Field, but the fans "didn't get the
atmosphere that made this game so compelling in Buffalo, Chicago and
Boston" in the last three years. The weather "simply did not
cooperate." Shaughnessy: "Warm weather is nobody's fault. But there
were other things about the Pittsburgh Classic which gave hints that
this event might have outlived its usefulness." Pittsburgh is "simply
not a metropolis we associate with hockey," and Heinz Field is a "new
facility singularly associated with football and the Steelers."
Shaughnessy: "It's not old-timey like Fenway or Wrigley. It's simply a
football field. Nothing more" (SI.com, 1/3).
However, in Vancouver, Cam Cole asks, "Now that everybody has had a
chance to take a deep breath, can we all agree there was nothing
terribly sinister about the Bridgestone Winter Classic?" An outdoor
game should only be played "once per year," but it needs to be held "by
all means." Cole: "The fourth edition was such an unmitigated disaster,
it sent sponsors home delighted, made a major U.S. network happy, and
attracted a ton of casual viewers. The NHL will just have to live with
those kinds of consequences" (VANCOUVER SUN, 1/4).